This morning in metals, here are a couple news items that piqued our interest: China giving the U.S. a break in trade “war” by lifting the tariff on cars… According to a story originally reported by Bloomberg today, China will lift the 25% retaliatory duty on cars for three months (thanks, China!) in an effort to […]
Category: Ferrous Metals
Is Iron Ore Heading for Further Falls?
With all this talk of trade wars and weakness, both on the Shanghai stock market and in the Chinese currency, you would expect that steel production in China would be heading south fast. In actual fact, steel mills continue to churn out product at near-record levels and imports of iron ore remain robust. Need buying […]
Morning in Metals: Section 232 Tariffs Working? Competing Studies Duke It Out
This morning in metals (and commodities), a few news bits we’re following: OPEC forecasts fall in demand for cartel’s crude next year. “OPEC estimates the world will need 31.4m barrels a day of the cartel’s crude next year, 2.1m b/d less than demand from 2017, as production from US shale fields continues to swell,” according […]
Core Loss the Center of Grain-Oriented Electrical Steel Exclusion Requests
For large power equipment manufacturers, Section 232 comes down to two little words: core loss. Nobody explains the situation better than SPX Transformer Solutions in their Section 232 exclusion request for two grades of domain-refined GOES: “DR-GOES is one of the most expensive materials used in the manufacture of power transformers, and its cost equates […]
Morning in Metals: U.S. Steel Shipments Up, China Near-Term Non-Ferrous Outlook Weak
Here’s what we’re tracking this morning in metals: U.S. steel shipments are up in October. AISI has reported that U.S. steel mills shipped close to 8.2 million net tons in October, a 4.6% rise over the month of September — and a 6% increase from the 7.7 million net tons shipped in October 2017. In […]
Stainless MMI: Nickel Prices Fall, Stainless Surcharges Steady
The Stainless Steel Monthly Metals Index (MMI) dropped two points, bringing the index value to 66 points. The drop came as a result of lower LME nickel prices, while U.S. stainless steel surcharges held steady this month. Need buying strategies for steel in 2019? MetalMiner’s Annual Outlook has what you need LME Nickel LME nickel […]
Raw Steel MMI: Steel Prices Continue to Lose Momentum
The Raw Steels Monthly Metals Index (MMI) fell again this month, dropping to 83 points. The Raw Steels MMI held at 89 points since August for four consecutive months, but started decreasing in November. Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook The recent slowdown in domestic steel price momentum […]
Week in Review: USMCA, Sebree Expansion, Rio’s Bauxite and MMI Week
Before we head into the weekend, let’s take a look back at the week that was and some of the metals storylines here on MetalMiner: Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook Following the signing of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) during the Group of 20 (G20) summit in […]
This Morning in Metals: Vale Says Drop in Steel Prices is Temporary
This morning in metals news, the state of falling global steel prices is a temporary condition attributable to Chinese overproduction ahead of winter cuts, according to miner Brazilian miner Vale; Chilean copper exports in November were less valuable; and the arrest of a Huawei Technologies executive has caused concern that it could cast a shadow […]
This Morning in Metals: U.S. Steel Import Market Share Hits 20% in November
This morning in metals news, steel imports coming into the U.S. continue to be down from last year’s levels, Shanghai steel prices are down and the sharp corrective trend in iron ore prices could be coming to an end. Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook U.S. Steel Import […]
